Ok, a friend is after a boat and asked me the advantages of a rib/ sib over a similar sized traditional boat, e.g. an open boat in the 16-20ft range. He is looking for a family boat to explore the coast, anchor for picnics etc. I am struggling to find any good reasons he should go for a RIB or large SIB instead of a hard hull. Any ideas?

RIBs seem a bit short on space for families, picnics etc and they do take more effort with tube pressures to monitor, punctures and so on. It also appears to be quite expensive to purchase a rib with any sort of cuddy for shelter.

RIBs seem a bit short on space for families, picnics etc and they do take more effort with tube pressures to monitor, punctures and so on. It also appears to be quite expensive to purchase a rib with any sort of cuddy for shelter.

RIBs are certainly shorter on space than a comparable length hard boat. Forget SIBs for family trips up there. A forward cuddy fisher with a decent hull and good power might well be the answer for your friend. Every coastline makes their own version suited to local conditions.

Based in space per foot/metre a RIB will always lose out in this comparison. There's no effort in monitoring tube pressures and punctures are very rare. They are very safe boats and cope with rough seas well and, I assume, are lighter than an open boat. You need a RIB much bigger than 20 foot to get a cuddy.

Thanks. Good points. However much I like RIBs, it does seem like he'd be best off with a 16-18' traditional boat with a cuddy for shelter. Something like an Orkney. He wouldn't be out in the more extreme weather conditions which would give the RIB a big advantage. Space and shelter, along with predictable handling, good sea keeping and reasonably economical seem to be the main points.

I've been on most types of Orkneys and Arran's over the years, we owned one for a while. On the plus side they offer good cuddy protection and plenty of space. On the minus side the planing ones slap quite a lot at speed and the non planing ones wallow a lot. If your friends family like a flatter smoother ride then a rib is worthy of thought. If they could try both in a slight chop or rougher they would see the (big difference). I also had a sib, great boat for a few hours fun but family would have to be very keen and like being wet to enjoy that. The ride difference between my 20ft rib and an Orkney fast liner of the same size is massive. For my family they preferred the stability of a rib once they tried it, actually they were amazed by how secure they feel - and no one got sea sick on it, yet! That said if the choice is for a non rib the Orkney's seem pretty seaworthy and hardy. We also had a 18ft quicksilver, I wouldn't go there! We all learn. Richard

Having tried both variations & various inbetween its a difficult choice. If they are likely to be fine weather boaties then a rib is unnecessary as their forte is when the weather turns or you get some chop.

Some friends of ours have a rib with a leisure layout & its a great picnic'ing thing with plenty of seating etc. A cuddy is very good idea with families, even an open cuddy is better than being lashed in the rain if you get the weather wrong.

I'd love a cabin/cruisette style rib with a leisure layout but nobody appears to make one for sensible money.

This has been our boat for the last couple of years, just sold it. A perfect fair weather leisure boat, easy to launch, dry & warm even in the winter months. Heaps of room on board for the size of it too. Not much good in anything above a F4 though! It was OK but not much fun onboard. But like many we are fair weather boaties.

But you're comparing apples to oranges surely. We've gone from SIB to Yacht, neither of which is ideal for the OPs intended purpose. The OP will get much more "bang for his buck" with a tidy hard boat with a cuddy or small cabin, than a RIB. He'll lose out on seakeeping, but if he's only bay hopping in fair weather, it will suit his purpose.

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